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I made an order as a test. I got everything I ordered but it took about a week or two longer than if I ordered throuh Neal. Maelstrom is perfectly fine and has the advantage of web ordering. Being that I live in the USA, I think that TheWarStore will be better for me in the long run, financially.

I have ordered from Maelstrom several times.
Everything ordered showed up within three weeks.

The order that took the longest was during the big summer sale.
I ordered the imperial strongpoint (the $90 box).
I got all the components in their individual boxes, but my cost was not changed.

I also had to email them to correct my shipping adress because I goofed it.
They replied within 2 days and corrected it.

I also use Dungeon Trader for Warmachine/Hordes stuff.
I have found that the amount you save, and the service you get remains roughly similar, whether you use Warstore or Maelstrom.
At least in the U.S.

For those who say emails are not answered. Do you use a hotmail or other throwaway type email?

It is entirely possible that the email gets marked as spam by the store's provider. I have had this problem getting email from friends from hotmail or others.

For the record:

1) I had issues with macpac51 also. Free Shipping that was not free (finally got it mostly refunded) and it took forever for him to ship it out (was fast once sent out though).

2) I have had 1 order that was shorted bits from The Warstore, it was taken care of fast and efficiently! No other issues.

3) I tried Maelstrom because the order I was making was a small enough one that it would cheaper to order from GW directly rather than The Warstore and I heard all of the great deals and customer service others have gotten with MS (I just missed getting their Easter discount by a few hours too). In the same time frame I was waiting on my order from Maelstrom, I received over 25 packages from the UK after making way too many buying binges. Maelstrom is the only order I did not receive.

4) Since GW is now doing Free Shipping with purchase of $15 or more, I have bought exclusively from them because I have only been buying "direct only" minis, bits or codexes. Well, that is not quite true, I bought some plastic bits off of other sites too.

I've used Maelstrom a few times, and the Warstore a few times.

I liked Maelstrom better I have to admit. TAkes a wee bit longer, but I can order GW from their website, and I still save a buggerload of money, and saving more money means I can buy more stuff, like Flames of War.

And now that Maelstrom has terrain stuff, I doubt I'll shop anywhere else.

I also do business with the Warstore due to his store being in the US and I prefer to support US business. Nothing against you Brits but if I have to pay $5 more on a $100 order (just throwing that number out there) to support a business, who with our fethed up economy must be feeling the impact as well, I'll gladly do it.

For those who are emailing Maelstrom. I emailed on Sat, was replied to on Sunday. But I did it from the website's "contact us" page instead of sending an email from my email. Try that maybe?

skrulnik wrote:The order that took the longest was during the big summer sale.
I ordered the imperial strongpoint (the $90 box).
I got all the components in their individual boxes, but my cost was not changed.

Same thing happened to me. I ordered *cough* four of them *cough* but they had run out (they were a splash release after all) but they were nice enough to send me everything that would have been in them as separate boxes for no additional charge.

Since so many people are now mentioning Warstore, I feel I should mention my experiences there - all have been excellent. I've ordered from them perhaps a dozen times. The shipping has always been very fast, I've never had anything be out of stock except once - I ordered Brazen Brass and it turns out GWS no longer produces it. They said that they could send Vallejo's equivalent, which turned out to be even better then the Brazen Brass was. The only downside is as many others have mentioned, no cart for GWS stuff, and that's probably saved me hundreds of dollars from making impulse buys at work, so that has been a plus. I make a list and then call it in when I get home in the morning. They also gave me a bunch of advise on washes and mentioned other brands of paint that I should look into (like Privateer P3).

Since GWS has free shipping the last few months, I've been alternating between them and Warstore depending on whether the order was less or more then $30. I'd strongly recommend the Warstore.

I've used the Warstore as well, and I've never had a problem (or a problem that wasn't quickly solved by a quick E-mail to Neal). Wonderful service.

Maelstrom's just cheaper, and when your dollar goes from being worth US98c, to US60c and then back up again, yet really doesn't move much vs the £, Maelstrom offers better prices and no shipping costs.

I've used them once for a box of GW skellies and a large set of VGC paints. Price was great, shipping was a little slow given that all were listed as in stock but given the saving I didn't mind all that much.

So who are the 21 people who voted NO?

That's like saying the Apple Online Store isn't legit... or that the sky isn't blue and the earth is flat

I've bought a ton of stuff off Maelstrom over the years, but I do tend to wait until the extra discount is available. The "CHRIMBO" discount expiring at the end of this month came in handy. Particularly as UK VAT is going back up to 17.5% next month.

The Plastic Surgeon wrote:or that the sky isn't blue

Never, ever, use this example, it is too easy to retort. Unless you are going to argue that the sky is blue in the middle of the night. My father loved using it, I would just respond "night" when I was around.

Given everyone seems so ardent in their support for Maelstrom, I'm going to give their customer service another go and email them throught their website... again... and see if they respond.

If I still don't get a response - then it's either they hate me personally - or everyone here is being paid off in some way... (LOL)

Will get back to folks on this.

temprus wrote:

The Plastic Surgeon wrote:or that the sky isn't blue

Never, ever, use this example, it is too easy to retort. Unless you are going to argue that the sky is blue in the middle of the night. My father loved using it, I would just respond "night" when I was around.

Then you can further retort and say that nothing has any colour without the presence of light. So a blue sky or a blue flower - neither have any colour when there's no light around. Pigment, perhaps, but as colour is based upon what light an object absorbs, diffuses and reflects/refracts, you need light to have colour, and when the sun is gone, there's not enough light to diffuse in the atmosphere.

i guess the answer is a resounding YESSS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

lord_blackfang wrote:

BlueGiant wrote:Looks like they under-declared the amount the contents were worth.

That's common practice with friendlier online stores. It's so you pay less duties and import tax.

QFT , they are doing it for their customers sake ( in risk of fraud to the Customs )
Although that has back fired with horrifying consequences for me ( the customer )

I thought I would just add that MG are the Dogs do-dars!

Today I have tried to order about £170 worth of stuff and with my customary lack of IT skill faked it up royally on no less than two occasions - all my own fault. Each time a quick call to MG [using the number listed on the CONTACT US page] has quickly resulted in them refunding/moneybacking the right amount, getting the order processed and generally being good eggs about having to deal with a numpty like me!

Definitely legit, thoroughly recommended!

How much is Maelstrom's normal discount?

Usually 10% on most sytems [GW/FOW] but this increases on certain items. Plus they give further bulk discounts 1% @ £50, 2% @ £100 and 4% @£200. Added to that you also get 1% moneyback [read store credit] for use against furture purchase. All of that with free P&P internationally! So not bad all in all.

Also for you colonial/foriegn types there is the currency exchange rates which can increase savings against local purchasing considerably, although this is obviously down to you depending on your method of purchase and your credit provider.



Edit - Forgot to mention as well they will price match any other UK webstore, which is very handy if you have the time to search [your on a forum so i'm guessing you do!] for alternative prices but still want to buy from a trustworthy source

Maelstrom is Ok. I've never had problems with them.

buyforlessonline... I had several problems with them.
My packet was "lost". They did not answer my emails or the paypal claim. Thanks to paypal I did not lost my money and I recovered it almost two moths later.

Kogwar wrote:Ok so i have been looking at maelstrom games i was wondering is it ligit and what experience have you had from it.

Seeing as teens nowadays (at least in my district) seem to enjoy saying LEGIT a lot, consider spelling it correctly. N'est-ce pas?

And I've heard positively glowing things about them. So yes.

Rico...

Hi guys

Rob Lane here, MD of Maelstrom Games.

I just want to say, first of all, thanks to all who have commented on this thread - all feedback is greatly appreciated, good or bad, but obviously especially good ;o)

The main point of this reply is to reassure customers, both prospective and existing, that we are indeed ligit [sic]. We've been around for six years now and have grown exponentially in that time, and are still growing, but we are also all wargamers ourselves and generally know the products we sell inside out, and if we don't, we're in the process of finding out.

I'm quite keen to reassure those customers who have had a bad experience that, firstly, a bad experience with us is certainly not what we want to give you. We are not in the business of deceiving people, we are in the business of giving customers good service, and if we have fallen down in the past I can only apologise personally and hope that any problems have been dealt with efficiently and quickly. Whilst we don't always get everything right, we are only human and do strive to correct any mistakes we make as soon as possible. We are bound by many DSRs (Distance Selling Regulations) here in the EU and these are quite onerous to retailers, so rest assured - if you don't receive your goods, don't want them or your goods are faulty, we're bound by law to replace them or refund you. In short, we are a legitimate business.

Secondly, we do have problems with e-mails just like any other retailer. Webmail, especially hotmail, seems to dislike our e-mails, as does AOL; so if you have had problems or haven't received a reply to an e-mail you have sent, please a) check your spam folder, b) ring us or c) try the contact us form on the website. We have a dedicated customer service team and Tom (the manager) is always available for a call at some point during the day. Obviously if you are overseas that could prove costly and difficult in terms of the time difference, but I can reassure everybody that we reply to *every* e-mail we receive.

If you can't get in contact with us via any of the above, for whatever reason, send a PM here. I hesitate to say that because the proper channel is via our customer service team, so only use it in emergencies!

Our website is currently undergoing a revamp and hopefully that will improve everybody's experience, because we will have better ways of contacting us as well as proper tracking of your orders.

I don't like to badmouth suppliers, but it has to be said that we are currently experiencing problems with Games Workshop in terms of the supply of their goods. Whilst we keep everything in stock, GW have placed a limitation on how many times we can order from them a week (once) and how long they can take to send us the goods (if the order is over £5,000, which our orders always are, they can take however long they like). Thus, sometimes our GW orders are well over a week late, which - if your item is not in stock - will delay your order. We do try to split orders to ensure you get something quickly, at least, but that is not always possible.

I'm not going to go into the whys and wherefores of GW's new terms and conditions, but it has to be said that they cause independent retailers problems, but - unlike our friends in the United States, and I sympathise with every one of them - at least we can order from GW and sell online. Please bear the above in mind when you order GW stuff from us.

Lastly, I'd like to say a big thank you to those who have responded positively to the original question - it's you guys that ensure we are still around. Kudos to you!

Cheers

Rob

Maelstrom Games wrote:I don't like to badmouth suppliers, but it has to be said that we are currently experiencing problems with Games Workshop in terms of the supply of their goods. Whilst we keep everything in stock, GW have placed a limitation on how many times we can order from them a week (once) and how long they can take to send us the goods (if the order is over £5,000, which our orders always are, they can take however long they like). Thus, sometimes our GW orders are well over a week late, which - if your item is not in stock - will delay your order. We do try to split orders to ensure you get something quickly, at least, but that is not always possible.

I'm not going to go into the whys and wherefores of GW's new terms and conditions, but it has to be said that they cause independent retailers problems, but - unlike our friends in the United States, and I sympathise with every one of them - at least we can order from GW and sell online. Please bear the above in mind when you order GW stuff from us.

Ahem... Once again The Workshop makes friends and influences people. What a nice company.

Oh and today's phrase is 'delusion of monopoly', please read and digest, especially you Thomas, or a letter is going home to Mr and Mrs Kirby again...

When you open your Maelstrom package an alien will hop out and quickly brainwash you.

It is their way of getting a growing number of people to endorse their store and take over the world at the same time

One thing I didn't find out clearly on their site: is credit card the only payment method, or are there other ways as well?

Due to GW's policy it might be worth putting that up on the FAQ so people aren't left in the dark on how long its going to take for an item to be restocked. Might save a lot of e-mails and hassle; when I ordered the FAQ mentioned a 3 day wait period IIRC. Customers hate not knowing whats going on with their $$$ especially first timers :(

I ordered some stuff from Maelstrom, and it's been in packing for a few days longer then "1 or 2 days in packing" would suggest. However, I've dealt with HLJ, which takes forever to do anything, so I'm in no hurry. So long as it's here when I get back after Xmas break.

Thanks for the personal message Rob,

Been a customer for a long time.
In fact, I believe I am famous here for introducing our gaming group to Maelstrom (Read I was the one that showed HBMC your store )

As for service,
never ever had an issue (I believe I have around 80 orders from them to date).

Best consistent price I can get from Australia,
and service is always great.

Sometimes postage has taken a little longer than expected, but this has been balanced by receiving items WAY faster than expected more often than not (One got an item in 3 days - UK to Aus, didn't even think it was possible!!)

So a Huge LEGIT from me

H.B.M.C. wrote:

skrulnik wrote:The order that took the longest was during the big summer sale.
I ordered the imperial strongpoint (the $90 box).
I got all the components in their individual boxes, but my cost was not changed.

Same thing happened to me. I ordered *cough* four of them *cough* but they had run out (they were a splash release after all) but they were nice enough to send me everything that would have been in them as separate boxes for no additional charge.

Just one quick comment on this, specifically:

Even GW themselves ran out of the "boxed" strongpoint at that time. They did honor the actual orders themselves, and sent/sell the loose items for the same price.

I only remember this because I was in NY for a bit of the summer, and placed a preorder through one of the GW shops there so I could have something to work on while stuck dealing with the relatives.

But otherwise:
Maelstrom isn't too bad. Like Fateweaver though...I'd rather order any non-GW stuff through Neal since it's a US business. GW stuff I'll get through my FLGS.

Hi Rob,

I guess I'm Dakka's biggest Maelstrom fanboy, and started the meme of linking to your store several times during a sentence and have done what I can to make sure everyone knows about you.

I know of many people - especially us in Australia - who have made the switch to buying virtually everything from you guys unless we physically cannot. Even yesterday a friend and I were in our local GW (which is quite literally up the road from me), and we thought about impulse buying something, but then stopped because we knew it would be 40%+ cheaper if we got if from you guys.

And that's the sad fact about being a 40K player in Australia. We all know GW prices are beyond stupid and hopelessly overpriced, but us folks here in the land down under are stuck paying 40% more than the US and UK for no discernible reason.

Without your store our group would not be where we are now. Hell, when our government handed out stimulus money to every tax-paying citizen to stimulate the Australian economy, I spent it all at Maelstrom!

So thank you for your service, and I will continue to do what I can do to convert every Australian gamer I can find to ordering from you.